St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1887-10-08

OOSANGION. LOUISIANA
THE MAKERS OF CIGARS.
1eaesavs Csheas ssA 0pa.iaras and Mn
~ 0sroaas aaA Bohemlana.
Ihere are two classes Of cigar-mak.
srs in New York. those who do what 10
called Spanish work and those who
work with domestic tobaccos. Tho
men who arc on Spanish work are Gu
bans and Spaniards. some seven hum
ared in all. They object to having
any body else in their shops. and if .
eigarmaker Of another nationality
should get job there they would mako
It % unpleasant for him that he would
leave. In this they are sustained BY
their employers. who are Cubans or
Spaniards themselves. and believe that
Cubans and Spaniards are the only
people who know how to make the best
cigars They are born with = cigar
In their mouths. and they die with .
cigarette between their teeth.
The only tobacco used in some Of tho
Spanish workshops is imported. while
others use both Havana and Key
West tobacco. and make . grade Of
Key West cigars in which there is q
fair amount Of domestic tobacco. more
than they acknowledge. All their
cigars are high-priced, and the men
earn on the average twice ~ much .
thousand IS il paid to other cigar.
makers. 1t il . common thing for
them to give out work 1t $50 and SIS a
thousand. and . cigarmaker who ID
quick enough to turn out = thousand
Of that grade in . week makes good
wages. They have grades Of cigars
for which $50 and more is paid thou.
sand. A thousand Of such cigars are
worth several hundred dollars. and
they are not often manufactured. Tho
high prices paid make the Cuban cigar
makers regard themselves rs the aristo-
Gratis Of the trade. though there is no
such difference in wages IS the scale OF
prices per thousand would seem to
show. A good cigarmaker can mako
two thousand $3.50 cigars while .
Cuban is making one thousand tl7 or
go cigars.
There is jealousy and rivalry in the
Cuban shops among the rapid cigar
makers. In every shop there are two
or three who regard themselves IS the
best men. They have contests. and
the one who wins is pittsd against the
best men of other shops. Pericho Bet
tancourt has been regarded as the best
man for some time. though there are
others who dispute the title. On good
work he could make $40 week and
more il he kept at it steadily. and it is
even said OF him that he could make .
thousand go cigars in . week. These
are wages that no maker OF cheap
cigars could ever make. rs he would
have to turn out . thousand cigars .
day to do it
The bulk Of tho cigarmakers are Ger
mans and Bohemians, who turn out
cigars from Is . thousand to I'll. These
are the two extremes OF ordinary trade.
though there are tenement-hOuse cigars
made 40 low ~ g. and an occa-
sional order runs up to $50 or more.
No union man makes cigars under 81
Q thousand. and that is the limit Of
price in a union shop. but there are .
few non-union shops that 60 lower:
None Of these cigars are made OF i'm.
ported tobacco. though many have
Sumatrs wrappers or Havana filters.
A manufacturer tries to introduce some
imported tobacco. no matter what the
quality or character. that he may call
his cigars imported. though millions Of
cigars are marked imported where not
= bit Of the tobacco ever breathed salt
air before it reached New York. 1t ID
better TO smoke . cigar made through.
out of good domestic tobacco than Of
poor imported. though there are not
many smokers who appreciate the truth
Of this.
There is more difference between
cirsrmakcrs than between smokers.
A Is cigarmakcr could could no more
make q $50 cigar than . man who had
never touched . piece OF tobacco be-
fore could make . e6 cigar. In the
first place he would not know how ia
hold the tobacco. A skilled cigar
maker takes up his filler. binder and
wrapper differently from an unskilled
cigarmaker. and it takes years to learn
how to do it To become . good cigar
maker . man must begin Is = boy. when
his fingers are supple. and some mel
can not learn even then. Foreigner
take more naturally to it than Ameri'
can boya An American tends to make
cigars by machinery. and will not take
the patient care it requires to make
the point taper. the belly gradually
swell. and the beautiful curves that .
fine cigar shows He thinks that 50
long ~ the tobacco all gets there. stick,
together and can be smoked. that his
work is done. That may be the reason
that the cream OF the cigsrmaking
work is done BY foreigners whose an
cestors made cigars and smoked them
for generations before. T. Sun.
Remarkably Bright Prospects.
Gus Snobberly is one Of Gotham'a
fast Young men. His tailor sent word
to him the other day that he must come
and see him about his bill. He called
- L. Rk vNanev